From the Ashes
by Melinda Sandy Halliwell
Summary: The war is over, but peace is hard work
1. Prologue: On Trial

She sat in a simple wooden chair in the middle of the well lit room. The only other people in the room were the seven commissioners, facing her and sat in comfortable chairs on a raised platform.

"State your name, rank, and affiliation," said the Chair of the Commission, a balding older man.

"Ann Une, formerly a colonel of the Organization of the Zodiac." She looked straight ahead as she spoke, carefully keeping her expression neutral.

"You have been charged with War Crimes, and Crimes against Humanity. How do you plead?"

"Guilty."

The silence felt heavy, and she wondered if her answer had surprised the panel.

"Colonel Une, can you describe what your role in the Oz organization was?"

"I was one of two officers who reported directly to Colonel Khushrenada. I served as his personal assistant, assassin, and representative." She remained calm as she spoke. "I had the authority to order troops and access to the Mobile Suits. The only one who could countermand my orders was Colonel Khushrenada himself."

"Do you have any regrets?" This voice was soft, and Une wondered if the woman did not hope the answer was a simple "yes."

She raised her chin slightly. "The ideals of Oz under Treize Khushrenada were noble and worthy ideals. However, the methods we used to try to reach those goals were less so, and I regret each death, whether caused by myself directly or indirectly."

"Lady Une," began a man who sounded far too young to be on the Commission, but she knew he was not the youngest, "I'm sure you've heard the rumors. Were you competent to make decisions, and are you competent to stand trial now?"

Despite her attempt to maintain a neutral expression, her lips quirked in distaste. "I fully realize that for my actions, there are many who believe, rightly so, that I deserve to go through Hell. However true that may be, I have put forth an effort to avoid these rumors of which you speak. I was competent then, and I am so now." She was quiet for a moment, "There are moments I wish I could take the easy out those rumors offer me, but I acted in full mental capacity."

The young man pressed, "Mis...excuse me, Colonel Khushrenada did not manipulate you in anyway?"

Une smiled slightly before recovering her mask. "Treize Khushrenada shared his dream with me, and I believed in it, and shared it. I was willing to do whatever it took to make it come true, to sacrifice whatever it required. In that much, he did influence me. I admired him, his devotion and grace, but he in no way exerted undue influence over me."

The silence that followed her answer stretched on, until the Chairman asked, "Are there any other questions for Colonel Une?" After a moment, he continued, "Colonel Une, do you have anything else you'd like to say?"

"Not until after the Commission has passed its verdict, no."

"Very well. As you know, for the sake of transparency, these proceedings are being broadcast live. Therefore, rather than asking you to wait outside, I would ask that you remain seated as we confer."

She nodded, having already been aware of this, but figuring such was for the cameras.

The first voice to break the silence was that of Minister Darlian. "I am one of those who was hurt by Colonel Une directly. In front of me, she threw the bomb which caused my father's death, and then tried to kill me. I can sympathize with those who demand justice in the form of her own death. However, I have also seen first hand the efforts that she has made toward peace and her commitment for a lasting peace. I greatly disagree with the means employed, not just by her but by others of rank within various factions of the war. However, I do believe that her commitment to peace is real. I vote, and encourage you do the same, that we issue a full pardon without condition."

Une was not surprised by the speech. After all, she'd volunteered to allow the young woman to kill her herself if she so chose, and the fact that Une was alive to be tried was evidence of Relena's perspective.

The next voice, however, did surprise her. An older gentleman spoke. "I agree. Were we to sentence Colonel Une to death, that would provide a sense of vengeance to those she's hurt. We would not, however, be safer, nor would her death move us closer to peace."

He sighed. "Besides, we must remember that war was, in fact, eminent. Even if Colonel Khushrenada or Oz had never existed, the war between the Colonies and the Alliance would have happened. They tried to show the failure and futility of war, and there is no question that escalation and manipulation were the wrong way to go about doing so, but they were trying to work in a world we had created. Therefore, I cast my vote with Minister Darlian."

After that, Une did not fully hear the words of the others. That the old man understood shocked her, and, in a different situation, she would have expressed her gratitude. Instead, she sat silently as they continued to discuss her fate.

Eventually, their leader said, "Colonel Ann Une, please stand."

She did so.

"The Peace and Reconciliation Commission of the Earth Sphere United Nation and the Colonies pardons you of all your crimes. You are a free woman."


	2. Intrigued

The bar was full, and every set of eyes-except perhaps for the tenders and servers- were fixated on the screens as if it were a championship match. Instead, it was the culmination of a trial.

Sally took a sip of her scotch and then scanned the room. Of those present for this final chapter, about a fifth had been there for every step of the process, had listened to each story, had watched the woman on trial sit there silently, showing little reaction to anything that was said. She had been among those who had written her off as little more than a cold hearted bitch, at least at first.

"The woman has no heart. Listen to her. She's admitting to war crimes and is as calm as if she's talking about last night's diner."

There were several murmurs of assent, and Sally simply took another sip of her drink, keeping her own thoughts to herself.

She had never been overly interested in psychiatry, but Ann Une intrigued her. The woman had once ordered the arming of an entire store of nuclear warheads, and Sally had been the one who had had to figure out how to prevent the disaster. There was every reason for her to hate the woman, but she also remembered who she became as the war progressed, and she had become, like so many others, that she suffered from Multiple Personality Disorder.

During the trial, however, something had changed. She had watched the former Oz officer's reactions closely. She had seen the way she would just barely mouthed the names of the victims when their stories were told, the slight clenching of her jaw or tightening of her fists, blinks that lasted a bit too long.

Sally did not know, exactly, what all that meant-she did not know Une, though she wondered if anyone truly did-but she did know it meant her own assumptions were inaccurate. If those were separate personalities, the woman would not remember the names and details. And while Sally did not know why Une kept her reactions minimal, almost unnoticeable, she realized that this was not a heartless woman untouched by the stories of the pain she'd inflicted.

The murmurings fell silent as Relena began to speak. Sally smirked and turned her attention back to the screen. There was a reason that she had become known as the Princess of the World, though Sally wondered if "Princess of the Solar System" might not be a more accurate-though cumbersome-title. It did not matter what most had said just moments ago, the vast majority of people watching would agree with whatever Minister Darlian said; several, she suspected, would brag about how that had been their own opinion the whole time.

Even knowing that, Relena's words surprised Sally. The doctor was not remotely surprised at her vote-that had been a foregone conclusion, though perhaps not the extent of it. No, what had surprised her was something more ethereal: Relena Darlian-Peacecraft believed in Ann Une.

She reached for her glass, only to find it empty. Signaling the bar tender, she stared into the empty glass. Perhaps she was no better than the millions who would parrot the young woman's words and sentiment tomorrow morning, who would stand around water coolers and talk about how obvious it was that Lady Ann Une was a peace lover who had gotten caught up in and blinded by her ideals and her disgust at the injustice and the crimes against humanity-on earth and in the colonies. Her fascination with the woman on trial, the woman who had not hesitated to declare herself guilt, reached even higher as a result, not of Relena's words, but of her belief in Une.

The talk in the bar resumed once Relena finished, and Sally found her suspicions were already correct. Unfortunately, that made it difficult to hear what was being said. Sally shook her head and tried to make out what was being said. At least the summaries running along the bottom gave her an idea.

"Hey, they're about to give the verdict."

That was enough to get everyone to quiet and turn their attention back to the screens.

"_The Peace and Reconciliation Commission of the Earth Sphere United Nation and the Colonies pardons you of all your crimes. You are a free woman."_

The decision did not bring the cheers she would have expected earlier had the verdict gone the other way. However, there were smiles, people patting each other on the back, nods. Sally took a sip from her freshened glass. _Relena, do you have any idea the power you wield?_

There was quiet satisfaction throughout the bar, so no one missed when the chairman asked her if she had anything she wanted to say; though Sally thought you could hear a cricket when Une began.

The woman looked directly at the camera, _"Let me start by speaking to those I harmed in the war, directly or indirectly. I know that there is no apology that can begin to make right anything I did, but I still offer to you my sincere apology. And I swear to you that I will work to prevent another war."_

"_We are entering into a difficult time. I know that it's easy to think of war as difficult-and with the sacrifices that are made, I'm not saying that it's not. I know what it's like to lose a loved one in war, to be injured, to deal with the trauma of battle. But in war, we tend to see through clear binary lenses-though alliances may change, we tend to know who are our enemies and who our allies, we face the diametrical choices between life and death, we follow orders."_

"_But in peace, we see the full spectrum of choices, things we do not have time for in war. We are asked to forgive, to move on, to work along side those we once fought against. If we want a lasting peace, we must put aside thoughts of vengeance and retribution, and work for the well being of all-even former enemies. Because peace is not simply the lack of conflict, it is not simply about complete disarmament or assurance of mutual destruction. Peace is about assuring the well being for all, about working together to prevent the conditions in which people feel desperate. If we want peace, then we must be our best selves. That's the only way to keep those who gave their blood and lives in the war from having died in vain."_

Sally smiled. This was a woman who knew how to use words-if she had a different history she'd be as dangerous as Relena, though perhaps she was regardless. She lifted her glass towards the screen, "To being our best selves."

Dr. Sally Po had just finished making rounds when her phone vibrated. Frowning slightly, she touched the ear piece to answer it, "Po, go ahead."

"_Dr. Po, there's a woman here to see you. She's waiting in your office."_

Though the receptionist could not see it, she raised an eyebrow at that statement. "You let her in my office?"

"_I...I had to. She was causing a commotion. I mean, she wasn't doing anything. But everyone was getting all worked up, and it just seemed like a good idea to get her, well, away from everyone."_

"I see."

She frowned as she made her way to her office. Running through the list of possibilities, she decided it must be Relena that had dropped in-though she could not imagine why. Noin was surely with Milliardo, recovering from his own turn before the Commission. Dorothy would have demanded she be shown to the office rather than being asked to wait in there, and there were no other candidates.

Which was why she was surprised to open her door and find Une studying the degrees hanging on the wall.

"Lady Une," Sally managed to keep most of the surprise out of her voice, "to what do I owe the honor?"

The woman smiled as she turned to face her, "Doctor Sally Po, formerly a Lieutenant with the United Earth Sphere Alliance, leader of a rebel faction-rather successful leader, at that. I've come to make you an offer."

Sally managed to remain calm as she moved to sit behind her desk, "I'm surprised you know so much about me. What kind of offer?"

"I don't know whether you saw my trial or not, but if you did, you know that I'm fully committed to assuring that this peace is a true and lasting peace. I need help to do that." The lady remained standing as she spoke, watching Sally intently, enough that it made the physician vaguely uncomfortable.

"I did see it." Sally smiled, "I don't know how you think I can help though." She waved vaguely, "This is my contribution. Healing. Making sure that I'm a valuable enough doctor that when I insist that we take on those who cannot afford it, I'm heeded."

Une's smile grew, and Sally contemplated whether "predatory" would be the right description. "So I've heard. And that's exactly how you can help."

Sally had not noticed the briefcase before, but now Une opened it and pulled out a file. "We've gotten approval and at least vague pledges of support from the Commission and every major government. We'll also have enough politicians keeping track of us that we won't turn into an oppressive police force, but enough freedom that we can work to assure justice and well being. And I need a CMO."

Raising an eyebrow was all Sally could manage in response to that, though she managed to grab the folder.

"You have leadership skills; you're a compassionate doctor; you fight for what you believe in; and you know how to work with warriors. I want you."

The lady smiled and then turned to the door, "My number and e-mail are in there. If you have any questions, feel free to call. I hope to hear from you, accepting the position, soon."

Sally stared at the door once the other had left for a long minute before turning her attention to the folder.


End file.
